Within Infinity
by Steampunkmagic
Summary: (set after Deep Breath) Clara and Twelve's adventures through time and space, mad kings, robot samurai, darkness, and more
1. Unscheduled Stop

This is set soon after Deep Breath and is basically how things would go if I had control (sadly I don't).

Side note: Death And Flowers has not been abandoned, I just like to write multiple things at once.

Allons-y!

* * *

 ** _Ch.1_**

 ** _~Unscheduled Stop~_**

Devronix Alpha

The lights of the consol room flashed dangerously while a bitterly cold wind whipped Clara's hair across her face. The Doctor was pacing back and forth, like a caged animal, as he argued furiously with his ship. 

Clara stood out of the way unsure what to do. The TARDIS only just stopped trying to lock her into the library every other day, so she really did not want to provoke her further. Plus she had absolutely no idea what was going on. She'd heard a series of buzzing sirens go off and then the Doctor start yelling, but when she came running in from the kitchen, thinking they were being attacked or something, Clara only found him hollering at the ceiling. 

This version of him seemed to holler quite a bit. 

"I'll sell you for scraps!" The Doctor pointed a dramatic finger at the ceiling. 

The ship's engines let out a remarkably contemptful groan at that. 

"Oh you don't think I'll do it, do you?" He shouted. His jacket was askew and his hair a mess. "I will!" 

Chasing lights flashed around the room. 

Cautiously, Clara slipped up beside the Doctor on the grated metal platform. "Sooo… What did you do this time?" She said airily. 

The Doctor spun around as if startled by her appearance. It was times like these when it was hard for her to remember his true age. He looked like an absent minded professor caught up in the stress of finals week. 

"What did _I_ do?" The Doctor retorted indignantly. " _She's_ refusing to let me drive." 

Clara glanced behind him at the glowing piston tower. The ship didn't seem to obey his instructions all that much anyway, so she wasn't sure what the big deal was. "What do you mean?" 

The Doctor frowned petulantly. "I mean, we've landed somewhere and now I can't un-land. Every time I try she zaps me with a spark of static." 

He glared up at the roof with such comic indignation that Clara couldn't keep from laughing. She caught his sleeve between her fingers so he couldn't start pacing again. The Doctor seemed to automatically calm at her slight touch. 

"Well, why don't we see where she's trying to take us?" Clara reasoned as the TARDIS hummed in approval. 

"Oh so now you two get along." 

She shrugged, and leaned her hip against the dash board with a grin. "What could it hurt?" 

The Doctor raised a wild eyebrow and simply stared at her a moment. 

"Okay point taken." Clara said. "But things happen where ever you take us too." She returned his level stare equally. 

He looked like he wanted to argue but she was right and he knew it. The Doctor let out a huff without any real animosity behind it. "Alright fine. But don't complain to me about any of this later." He warned, barely concealing a grin of his own. 

"Great." Clara straightened in excitement causing her mini dress to swish about her thighs. She dodged around the Doctor heading for the door. 

"Hold up there." The Doctor sprang after her in his strange new Scottish brogue. He rushed to get to the doors ahead of her, dark coat flapping wildly. "Anything could be out there. I best go first, they might not like you." 

"Who?" She demanded stopping in front of him and placing her hands on her hips. He might be taller but Clara could glare the Doctor down if she wanted. 

"People." He said, that hint of a smile back. "You've a very stern face, they might take offence." 

With that he spun around and pushed open the doors leaving Clara sputtering in his wake. Sometimes she just wanted to kick him in the shin. Irritated she ran after him and out into an open courtyard. 

The sun momentarily blinded her and once Clara blinked her vision clear she saw why, there was not one but two suns hanging in a bright golden sky. The next thing she felt was the searing heat they gave off. A thin layer of sweat immediately broke out all over her body. The Doctor, of course, looked unaffected as always. 

"I hope they have air conditioning on this planet." Clara muttered, quickly searching her dress pockets for a hair band. Thankfully she had one (and a dress with pockets) and pulled her dark locks up off her neck. 

The courtyard was done is a swirling pattern of clay tiles which ranged in color from ochre to dust gray. Quaint little shops ringed around the space with glass windows displaying a whole manner of goods and wears Clara could not name. Food, jewelry, and strange mechanical instruments all, to her Earth gaze anyway, seemed both ancient and futuristic in design. 

But it was the people who really grabbed her attention. They were humanoid is shape, though perhaps all a bit taller and thinner than your average Earthling. Each person skin was hued in midnight tones, from deepest purple to indigo, and their hair was a wild assortment of shades, which she could not tell were artificial or not. Pinks, blues, greens, and butter yellows, all curled and pinned in elaborate styles which reminded Clara of statues of the Flavians. 

The clothing was also quite a bit fancier than she had come across on other planets, at least for day to day wear. The women were draped in rich jewel toned brocades roped in beads and ribbons, while the men wore colorful tunics and tight fitting leggings. They were a mesmerizing spectacle. 

The Doctor had out his sonic screwdriver and was scanning the ground intensely. "Devronix." He said at last, looking up. "We're in the Devronix system." 

"It's beautiful." 

The Doctor made a noise indicating he was unimpressed. 

Clara turned to him with a laugh. "Oh will you stop being such a grump. You're just mad because you didn't pick this place out yourself." 

The Doctor tried to look innocent, while avoiding her eyes - which didn't work. 

She took his fingers and gave his arm a little tug. "Come on, Doctor, take me exploring." 

"Oi, don't go and do that wide eye thing." He reprimanded, unable to avoid her gaze any longer. "It isn't fair." 

Clara merely smiled which made him groan in obvious defeat. Without further complaint he dragged her off in the direction of the shops, his blue eyes already alight with curiosity. No matter how much he grumbled she knew the Doctor was dying to explore the place as much as she was. It was his nature. 

"Halt!" Came the command of a booming voice from behind them. "Stop in the name of the King!" 


	2. The Manor House

**Ch. 2**

 **~The Manor House~**

The Doctor spun around on one heel, coat flapping madly. Automatically he angled his body in front of Clara's as he sought the source of the shout. 

The owner of the booming voice was not difficult to spot since, not only was he standing ten feet away, he was also wearing golden armor and aiming a spear at them. The tip of the spear crackled with electricity, shooting off orange sparks. The man was clearly a member of the Royal Guard, locally known as The Black Thorns - or at least they had been the last time he was here. They were the personal attendants of Devronix's chief ruling family. 

That meant this had to be Devronix Alpha, the power center of their solar system. It was the smallest planet by far and owned solely by the Laton family dynasty. The Laton's ruled above all kings and queens throughout the system for nearly 500 years. The under-kings paid them tribute in exchange for their ability to keep peace between the many provinces. 

The Doctor had never met anyone from the family personally, but he had heard quite a bit about them the last time he wandered across their empire. By most accounts the Laton's made sure justice was dealt swiftly and without mercy. He'd also heard the whole lot of them were mad, but a lot of people said that about kings. 

"You do not have authorization to be on this world." The guard said, eyes flashing a warning. 

"Authorization?" Clara repeated stepping forward, a little crease formed between her brows. He knew that crease well. "You have to get permission to visit planets now?" 

"Not to worry, chap." The Doctor cried cheerfully whipping out his psychic paper from an inside pocket. He waved it in front of the guard's face. "See we are completely authorized." 

Reading the paper, the guard immediately snapped to attention dropping the threatening demeanor. "Apologies, Sir." 

"Peachy." The Doctor muttered turning over the paper to see whatever was on it this time. Apparently today they were Sir Doctor and Lady Clara, ambassadors from the planet Calumina in the neighboring system. At least it stopped trying to tell everyone he was a traveling magician. 

"Your Lordship will need a visitor's tag to prevent any further confusion with the scanners. Your lady wife will need one as well." 

The man bowed in deference to Clara who raised an eyebrow but did not object to the title. She probably would once the guard was out of earshot though. 

"If you will allow me to escort you to the Imperial House, I can get you your tags." The guard continued. 

Lacking any other options they followed the guard to a waiting carriage, which ran on some kind of antigravity propulsion. The guard gave a voice command once they were inside then it needed no further assistance. 

Overcome with curiosity, Clara spent the ride staring out the small window straining to see as much of this world as she could. The pale gold sky silhouetted her delicate features. He could see the weight of all he had put her through recently even in her profile. The Doctor did not know how to make up for that, or if he should even try to. 

After twisting through the winding cobbled streets a grand manor house came gradually into view. It was situated on a slight hill above the rest of the city. Four stories of clay brickwork with fluted columns and arched windows were at the center of a series of tiered gardens. A riot of colorful flowers and fruits made the house seem almost plain in comparison. It was a surprisingly modest villa for the rulers of an entire solar system. 

From the questioning glance Clara shot him she seemed to be thinking the same. 

The carriage rolled to a stop at the front entryway. There was a wide crushed gravel path cutting through the gardens leading up to the large main doors. The guard, whom the Doctor had already mentally started calling Hard Hat, offered Clara his arm as an escort. He looked mildly besotted. 

"Well you're a proper gentleman, yeah." Clara grinned taking the offered arm. 

From her tone the Doctor got the impression she was taking a jab at him. That was unfair. He acted like a gentleman… occasionally. Okay, so maybe he had shown up at her door dressed as a mad monk and basically begged her to run away with him. Then proceeded to place her in a series of dangerous and compromising positions. She might actually have a point. 

The Doctor skulked after the pair of them towards the manor and past the multitude of other guards. 

* * *

Clara was somewhat alarmed to discover Visitor's Tags meant microchips embedded subcutaneously in the wrist. It made her think they did not want guests much, since what's a better deterrent for visitors than jabbing them with a long needle. 

An attendant (nurse? She wasn't sure) injected her and the Doctor with a level of bored apathy which would put the earth medical community to shame. Now every time she passed a scanner it read 'Lady Clara Oswald' and the Doctor was 'Sir Doctor Oswald' which sounded ridiculous. 

"So why are we married now?" Clara asked him pointedly after they were shown to the chambers reserved for visiting dignitaries. 

The Doctor flopped down on the oversized bed and nearly disappeared into the mattress. It deflated like a beanbag knocking him over backwards. She couldn't suppress a laugh as he struggled to right himself. 

"Social niceties." He huffed trying to act like nothing had just happened. "Around these parts they'd probably clap me in irons for escorting an unmarried woman alone." 

"Well that's a bit sexist." 

He shrugged making a face. "Most cultures have a tendency to marry off twelve year old noble girls to thirty or forty year old men." 

Clara smirked. "So then we won't stand out." 

"I don't look that much older than you!" 

"Yes you do." 

He glared peevishly at her but dropped the subject. The silver hair was still strange to her when just weeks ago he had been a young man who acted like a child. The Doctor _still_ acted like a child. He was the same though, underneath it all, the same man she had chosen to follow to the ends of the earth. 

The man who would do the impossible for her his impossible girl. 

"What are you thinking?" The Doctor asked, watching her curiously. 

"Only that I'm probably a bit underdressed for court." Clara indicated her exposed legs with a comic grimace. The other women would probably all going to be wearing jeweled ball gowns or something. 

"Check the wardrobes there's likely something in them." He waved dismissively at the two ornately carved cabinets in the corner of the room. 

Clara seriously doubted these people simply left clothes lying around in the guest rooms or, even less likely, that they would fit her human size. Happy to prove the ever smug man wrong about something Clara crossed the room and pulled open one of the wardrobes. 

Inside the antique looking piece of furniture were a virtual computer and a large white box. Curious she pressed the 'start' button on the screen. Suddenly the golden beam of a laser scanner shot from the computer making her jump in alarm. It ran over her entire body. The computer beeped and a moment later her measurements and ID appeared on the screen. 

The words 'Select Style' popped up beside them. "Okay this is cool." 

Clara clicked on the image of a dark blue gown with a fitted bodice and watched in amazement as the garment printed itself to her exact measurements inside the white box. 

"This is almost as good as the TARDIS." She gushed pulling it out and holding it up to a mirror. 

"Don't let her catch you saying that." The Doctor muttered. "Now let's go, this room is boring." 

She rolled her eyes. "You can wait five seconds while I change." Clara admonished walking towards the on-suit bath while he groaned in exasperation. 


End file.
